10/19/06 Pear & Pumpkin

Welcome to Vine to Wine this is your host Linda Moran and today is food and wine pairing day. With the fall in full swing now pears are back on the scene and with Halloween just around the corner we are going to see some great prices on one our favorite fall squashes the pumpkin. On today's program I am going to share a recipe for a great soup and a roast combining both of these harvest gems and of course the wines that go with them. The pear and the pumpkin are both in season right now and I think it is for a reason. The reason being - they go so well together! If you have a favorite squash soup recipe, try using roasted pumpkin as the squash and replace one third of that amount with peeled cored pears rather than squash. You will be rewarded with a marvelous soup that is great as a starter to a fall dinner or as the focus of your meal with a simple blue cheese topped salad and crusty bread. It is nice with Dry Riesling or Gewurztraminer or even a Rose. If you feel like drinking a red wine try a new world Grenache or Grenache based wine from the Rhone of France. If you like oven roasting meat; try adding chunks of pumpkin and cored pears to your potatoes and onions. You will be delighted at the variety of flavors that arise. Just add the pears about 20 or 30 minutes prior to taking the roast out so that they don't dissolve. Although, I have done that and it was still delicious! Serve this with whatever wine you would usually serve with that meat. For my soup recipe visit our website at vine to wine dot net and thank you for joining me on today's Vine to Wine.